One day, the king of Rum sent his ambassador with the order to ask three questions to the Muslims of Baghdad. When the ambassador reached the city, he informed the caliph of the king's wishes. Then the caliph ordered to gather the scholars of the city in the palace.

A few centuries ago, Baghdad was one of the cities where Islam developed, and many Muslim scholars lived there.

For this reason, the city was considered the center of knowledge of Islam. One day, the king of Rum sent his ambassador with the order to ask three questions to the Muslims of Baghdad. When the ambassador reached the city, he informed the caliph of the king's wishes. Then the caliph ordered to gather the scholars of the city in the palace.

The ambassador went to the pulpit:

- I will ask you three questions of my king. If you can answer him correctly, he promises you a lot of wealth. The questions are as follows:

What was before God?

Can God look at everything in one moment?

What is God doing now?

There was silence among the scholars. Suddenly, a soft voice was heard from the crowd:

- Dad, let me answer his questions!

The voice was that of a young boy who had followed his father. After asking permission from the Caliph, the boy was allowed to speak. Turning to the young Muslim, the Romanian ambassador repeated his first question:

- What happened before God?

The boy answered the question with a question:

- Do you know how to count?

"Yes," said the ambassador.

- Then count down from ten!

The ambassador started counting "ten, nine, eight" and finally stopped at "one".

- Why did you stop? said the boy.

- There is no other number before one, right?! - said the ambassador with surprise.

- If there is nothing before a simple number, how can there be something before the One God?! He is the First and the Last, the Outer and the Inner.

The ambassador could not object to this answer and asked the second question:

- Can God look at everything in one moment?

"Bring a candle and light it," said the boy. Now tell me where its light is spreading.

"But the light of the candle spreads in all directions: to the east, west, north, south... It is difficult to say an exact direction," said the ambassador in amazement.

- If the created light radiates in all directions, what do you expect from its Creator?! "Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth..." (Surah Nur, verse 35) exclaimed the boy.

The ambassador could not believe his eyes. He was surprised by the wise answers of this little boy standing in front of him. When the depressed ambassador was about to ask the last question, the boy said to him:

- Stop, it's fairer that you take my place and I go to the pulpit. "Everyone has heard your question, now let them hear my answer," he said.

The ambassador agreed to this proposal and, stepping down from the pulpit, repeated the third question:

- What is God doing now?

- God has now brought down a liar and a blasphemer from the pulpit and made everyone laugh at him. He exalted the believer who believed in the existence and oneness of God and expressed the truth with wisdom on his tongue. Allah is able to do everything.

After these words, the defeated ambassador returned to his city with the isnad. The boy became one of the greatest scholars in the Islamic world.

God blessed him with beautiful wisdom and a deep understanding of religion. His name is Nu'man ibn Thabit, and he is known to the whole world as Imam Azam.

Odiljon Narzullaev